It seems as though there was an embarrassment of embarrassments to choose from this year. Apple chose not to release new iPod touch or Apple TV (so far) hardware this year. Granted neither has much competition but Apple's mantra has always been to compete with themselves. Likewise the iPhone 4S didn't get a hardware update even as competing devices have seriously upped the handset game.

Privacy also took a swift, hard roshambo in the rights this year as everything from Apple's poorly coded location recording system to Google, Facebook, and Twitter being forced into decade, or double decade privacy oversight, to lack of disclosure surrounding Carrier IQ making headline. On the flip side, the media earned more than their usual share of fail points for once again never missing a chance to linkbait and headline grab at Apple's expense.

Netflix decided to take one the most successful, most loved brands in modern media and jack up the prices without proper PR, then split the company into Qwikster, then not split the company, then... we got lost. Instead of making streaming more solid and reliable -- and available internationally -- they spun in circles. Twitter likewise decided that poor communications, creating unease and distrust among developers, the #dickbar, and now the #dickapp re-design, and generally putting their user base last is something they're now big enough not to have to care about.

And then there were the patent problems -- Apple and Android makers suing each other, Lodsys suing independent developers, and generally everyone taking the tools of innovation and wielding them for consternation.

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Google has filed a request with the United States Patent on Trademark Office (USPTO), asking that 2 of the patents Lodsys is using the troll iOS and Android developers be re-examined.

“We’ve asked the US Patent Office to reexamine two Lodsys patents that we believe should never have been issued,” Google senior vice president and general counsel Kent Walker told Wired.com in a statement. “Developers play a critical part in the Android ecosystem and Google will continue to support them.”

When patent troll Lodsys started suing App Store developers, Apple filed a motion to intervene on developers' behalf and, not surprisingly, Lodsys objected. So now Apple has doubled down, insisting on a hearing and answering all of Lodsys' objections. If the court sides with Apple, Lodsys won't be staring at independent legals teams of assorted sizes. They'll be stared down by Apple legal.

Florian Mueller of FOSS Patents breaks down Apple's 6 areas of response, which he says "tears into pieces" Lodsys' arguments. He sums up:

As expected Lodsys was but the first highly publicized patent troll to try its hand at getting licensing fees from small, independent iOS developers, and as more come creeping out of the woodwork, some international devs are considering leaving the US App Store to avoid the costs and potential legal nightmares.

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Florian Mueller from FOSS Patents has put up a heart-breaking yet pragmatic set of recommendations for developers on how to cost-effectively deal with Lodsys and other patent trolls who target small, independent app makers. (If you're a mega corporation with billions of dollars in the war chest this obviously doesn't apply to you.) While Apple has filed a motion to intervene, there's no guarantees that it'll work, and it's unknown what, if any, support they're providing iOS developers beyond that. Google has yet to do or say anything, leaving Android developers entirely in the lurch. So...

Apple has filed a motion to intervene in Lodsys' lawsuits against 7 iOS developers. These developers are reportedly under NDA as well, so it's unknown if Apple is also stepping in with legal and financial support for the individuals, but they are clearly taken the suit back to Lodsys: